All or Nothing - Now Available!

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By Another Name, by Ashley Ludwig

Now Available -- All or Nothing, By Ashley Ludwig

A widow finds love.A soldier seeks redemption.A murderous bandit with the power to destroy them both.

A young widow starting over nearly dies on the perilous, winding road to Tucson, Arizona in 1876. An accident turns out to be a cover-up for a heinous crime at the hand of a murderous bandit. Robbed and left for dead, all that remains for RuthAnne Newcomb is her faith, and the talents God gave her. She needs both to endure the handsome, vengeful cavalry captain who saved her life.

Captain Bowen Shepherd offers aid in exchange for information leading to the criminal's capture. El Tejano, as the bandit is known, is bound to strike again and RuthAnne is the only living witness to his crimes. Left with nothing but her savvy and unwavering faith, RuthAnne is forced to return to the scene and help with the intolerable soldier’s quest.

Already, the criminal is after the lone witness who can destroy him. Bowen and RuthAnne must risk everything to unmask the bandit once and for all, before he can strike again at the one who cost him the most. Will their newfound love, or their lives, be the cost of bringing a murderer to justice?

About Ashley...

...is an inspirational, historical romance novelist. A graduate of the University of Arizona, with a Bachelor of Arts and Sciences in Archaeology/Anthropology, Ashley worked throughout the Southwest until she fled for the California coast!
She currently makes her home in Southwestern California wine country with her husband, two daughters, and dog.
Her first novel, All or Nothing, will be published September, 2009.
Look for her novella, By Another Name, April 11, 2009 on The Wild Rose Press.

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Friday, April 11, 2008

Where do the ideas come from...?

I'm in a think tank meeting, and I was just realizing that I am one of those people. Those idea people who think, why not? Why can't we do this? instead of that? And what's more... Where do all of the great ideas come from?

I think that most great ideas must stem from people being ticked off in one way or another. Wondering why something doesn't work as well as it should. Or why there isn't a better way to do something. Quicker. Faster. Cheaper. Better. Or maybe that's just me.

I've been thinking about agendas and organizing and planning, and really - I make fits and starts at it - but the question of the week is - what is your 5 year plan for writing?

That one has kept me up at night. So here's the deal with my writing background. I have always written. I used to dictate to my mother and she would read me back my elaborate tales. I fabricated great stories about riding on fire engines, or seeing a gorilla jump up and down on a policeman. (Some call this fibbing or - lieing. I call it a stellar imagination.)

so, I've always written. Since I was a child and could put pencil to paper. When I hyphenated words after consanants. When I misspelled everything. Okay, so I still need to edit myself - but who's asking. The point is, writers write. Because they have to. Because it is in their blood. Because they need to have that fix. Create that universe. Live in an alternate reality. It's who we are.

So, my 5 year plan for my writing is - to be the best writer I can be. To never give up. To write as many stories as I can. Enter contests. Publish multiple titles in e-book and print. To hone my craft. And, to learn how to juggle the important things, and let the little things drop where they may.

I have a few quotes from the prolific Nora Roberts that really made me understand my craft. And what I need to do to get to the next five years.

(I'm paraphrasing - but this is what I remember from her interview...)

"Write. Write the best story you can. Write what you would want to read. Enjoyyour characters. If you don't enjoy them, no one else will, either. Don't playfavorites. And remember, there are 88 keys on the piano - and think of all ofthe beautiful and different songs and types of music."

(This is me again) Every story and character is a unique universe. And with regards to my process, I guess you could say that I write with my heart. I write what I have loved to read, or love to read now. Sometimes it's historical. Sometimes it's a mystery. Sometimes a thriller. But there is always a love story at the heart, because I'm a hopeless romantic. As my daughter Rachel reminded me the other day...

"Every story should start with Once upon a time and should end with ...And they lived happily ever after..."

We only have a limited amount of time on this earth - and personally if I read a book, I want to be entertained. To escape for awhile. To fall in love with a place. The sights. The smells. To miss them when I close the cover. And that, my friends, is how I want to write everything I pour my heart into.